Police say teen who assaulted lawmaker bore no political grudge

Social Affairs

Published: 28 Feb. 2024, 17:38

Police say teen who assaulted lawmaker bore no political grudge

CCTV footage of the attacker striking the People Power Party lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin in a building in Sinsa-dong, southern Seoul on Jan. 25. [NEWS1]

The 15-year-old who assaulted conservative People Power Party (PPP) Rep. Bae Hyun-jin bore no political motive but wanted to draw media attention, the police said Wednesday.

The Seoul Gangnam Police Precinct referred the teenage attacker to the prosecution on charges of causing injury with a dangerous weapon.

The middle schooler struck the lawmaker’s head 15 times with a rock at a building located in Sinsa-dong in southern Seoul on Jan. 25.

“The police have found no accomplices and evidence showing the attack against Bae was premeditated,” said Kim Dong-su, the head of the precinct, during Wednesday’s briefing.

“Considering the offender’s personality and past behaviors, the authorities believe his action was to draw media and public attention,” Kim added.

The police said the offender said he came across Bae by chance and “unknowingly” attacked her while he was waiting to meet an aspiring celebrity at the site. The teenager did not elaborate on specific motivations for his action.

“The forensic analysis [of his electronic devices] results show no signs or evidence that he had a particular political motive or chose Bae as a target of the assault,” the police said.

The investigative authority found that the offender obtained information via KakaoTalk that the aspiring celebrity made a reservation at a restaurant in the building where the hair salon Bae was heading to was located.

The assailant, arrested on site, checked into a mental health institution after attending the police questioning.

Upon law enforcement's assessment, individuals suspected of having mental health issues that can pose threats to others can be held in medical centers for up to three days.

After the hospitalization for emergency measures expired on Jan. 30, the teenager’s parents decided to keep him in the ward. He has been staying in the hospital ever since.

The underage attacker allegedly obtained a rock in a garden near his home. He said to the police that carrying a rock makes him feel safe.

Bae and her assailant have yet to make a settlement.

The lawmaker suffered a 1-centimeter (0.39-inch) cut on her scalp.

“I believe law enforcement authorities will execute strict legal measures after a thorough investigation,” Bae, a former television news anchor and incumbent lawmaker, said on Jan. 27 while being discharged from the hospital.

A team of 27 police personnel carried out the investigation.

The underage attacker was confirmed to be the same person who threw a wallet at a 28-year-old vandal who spray-painted Gyeongbok Palace walls and threw coffee at actor Yoo Ah-in at Mapo Police Station in May last year.

In the upcoming April general elections, Bae will run for her incumbent election district, Songpa-B constituency, against the liberal Democratic Party’s Song Ki-ho.

BY LEE BO-RAM, LEE SOO-JUNG [lee.soojung1@joongang.co.kr]